LEICESTER MERCURY (UK) 15 April 06 Snakes Alive! Boa Gets Trapped In Removal Van (Dan Martin)

Moving house can be stressful enough without your pet 7ft snake getting trapped in the removal van.

But Fred the red-tailed boa constrictor certainly made life difficult for owners Steve and Paula Bolt when he wriggled into a hole in the side of the van and got stuck.

Eight hours later, the couple had to call out the fire brigade - who ripped the hire van apart to free Fred, leaving them with a £130 repair bill.

Steve, 35, said: "He didn't want to come out and these snakes are all muscle.

"He was being stubborn and he then got well and truly stuck."

The drama happened on Thursday afternoon as the family moved from their old house in Castle Donington to a new home in Eaton Road in the village.

Steve had put seven-year-old Fred into a cardboard box in the van while he made the five-minute trip to their new home.

By the time he arrived, all that could be seen of him was a tail poking out of the side of the van.

When a tasty frozen rat failed to tempt him out, the couple resorted to trying to pull him free by slathering him in baby oil.

Fred was still stuck at 11pm and had become so distressed he was struggling to breathe.

On the advice of vets and the RSPCA, the couple called 999.

Crews had to use hydraulic cutting equipment to peel the roof off the van and free Fred.

Steve said: "We were moving house and things were going quite well. We were on the last trip when it all went wrong.

"It's my fault really because I should have put him in a sack rather than the box.

"I thought he would be fine for a short while but he pushed the weight off the top of the box and went straight for the hole.

"It was really small but he still got in. But every time we pulled on his tail he squeezed further up the hole."

When Fred was eventually cut free he was unharmed but very unhappy.

Paula, 34, said: "He opened his mouth wide and looked like he was going to bite. There was Steve and a firefighter just behind him and I've never seen two people move so quickly."

The couple's nine-year-old daughter Alice said: "Fred's really grumpy but I'm glad he's OK. I'm still not going to go near him."

Steve now faces a repair bill for the van, but as a bodywork engineer will be able to do the work himself.

He said: "The owner has been really good but I don't think he believed me when I first told him what happened."

Lee Smith, of Long Eaton fire station, said: "A cat stuck up a tree - maybe. A cow trapped in a ditch - maybe. But a snake in a van? We've never had that."



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